Brexit: Sunak set to DELAY taking back control with EU laws to remain in place beyond deadline
There has been no new date penned in for the next stage to take place.
PA
Rishi Sunak is set to delay plans put in place for the UK to take back control of its laws, with EU rulings set to remain in place after the original deadline.
Rishi Sunak took on Tory rebels at the beginning of the year in a vote to make it easier for the UK to amend, repeal and replace EU law retained after Brexit.
Today, it was revealed that the Government had dropped plans to move forward with its report stage of the EU law bill in the Lords which was set to take place after Easter.
The House of Lords was set to continue its line-by-line scrutiny of on April 19.
Reports suggest it could be months, or even as late as after the general election in 2024 before progress continues.
PA
However, the Bill no longer appears on peers’ agenda for that day, with the Government’s proposals to tackle online abuse, the Online Safety Bill, taking its place.
The Observer reports that the Government has taken the surprise decision in an attempt to prevent a row breaking up in Parliament in the lead up to the local elections which are weeks away.
At current, there has been no new date penned in for the next stage to take place.
Reports suggest it could be months, or even as late as after the general election in 2024 before progress continues.
Rishi Sunak has delayed the vote
PA
It is likely to frustrate hardline Brexiteers but the growing number of opponents to it has led ministers to opt for a less aggressive, scaled down version.
The bill allows nearly all remaining retained EU law to be either repealed or absorbed into UK domestic law by December 31, 2023.
There are currently 4,000 laws on issues from workers’ rights to environmental protection.
One of the main points of contention is that the move would remove both houses of parliament from decision making on which of the laws should be kept or dropped, handing responsibility instead to civil servants and ministers.
Earlier this week, Lord Moylan warned that it would be a “huge mistake” to delay the vote.
He said: “It would be a huge mistake if in addition to giving up the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, we gave away the Retained EU Law Bill simply to please the EU.
“What have they given us in exchange?”
The Conservative peer added: “The Bill is an important next step in delivering Brexit, which is to remove the special status of EU law over our domestic law and society, and to revise and dispose of those EU laws we no longer need. That is what the Bill does. It is those two things that are important.
“The Government should press on with the report stage of the Bill.”